Dangerous Minds
by Morgeil
Summary: A collection of one-shots and drabbles focusing on Washu and Yume's friendship/rivalry. For the "30 friends" LiveJournal challenge. ::Okuda manga continuity::
1. Your Own

**Opening notes:** This is a missing scene from the end of the Bizen arc. Takes place just before Tenchi and co. are re-united with Funaho and Misaki towards the very end of _No Need for Tenchi!_ Vol. 6.

This was written for the 30 Friends prompt #25: "forgiveness".

* * *

"Hey."

Yume felt a light nudge at her shoulder and glanced up to see Washu standing over her. She groaned audibly and returned her gaze to the ground.

"If you're here to say "I told you so", you can save it," she spat.

"I wasn't planning to."

"Good. Now go away. I don't feel like talking."

Washu didn't respond immediately, but she made a point not to move. After a short while, she finally asked, "Are you... alright?"

At that, Yume _did_ snap. The defeated scientist jumped quickly to her feet, yelling. "I'm fine, dammit! How many times do I have to repeat that? Just fine!"

The redhead watched the tirade with a bemused expression, noting the slight quiver of Yume's legs when she stood._Yeah right_, she thought inwardly. _She's exhausted. She's trying her damnedest not to show it, of course, but she is._ She could tell that Hishima had also noticed his master's growing fatigue. The massive warrior was hovering closely and had not strayed farther than three feet from Yume's side since Tsunami appeared.

He reached up at his creator's outburst, laying a gentle hand on her elbow. "Master Yume, please sit back down."

"And I would heed that, if I were you," Washu agreed. "A millennia or two of suspended animation can really sap at your energy levels. I should know."

"Oh, shut up," Yume grumbled as she yanked her arm away from Hishima's grasp. "I said I was fine."

Ayeka and Tenchi chose that moment to interrupt the conversation, crossing over to them from where Mihoshi was tending to the incapacitated Ryoko.

"Bizen has been secured by the Royal fleet. Lady Funaho and Lady Misaki will be arriving on the platform here shortly," the Juraian princess announced the to the small gathering. She regarded Yume and Hishima sternly. "The Galaxy Police have also been notified."

Yume's only response to Ayeka's cold warning was to "hrmph" quietly and resume her previous seated position, careful to avoid eye contact with the purple-haired woman. Washu glanced between both of them in silence, her brow furrowed as she deliberated. A few long moments passed and she made a decision.

She bent down and knelt by her former Academy classmate. "Leave."

Yume head snapped back up. "What?"

"_What?_" echoed Ayeka, though quite a bit louder and more incredulous.

Washu ignored the princess. "I said _leave_. Get in your ship and go. If you're quick, you and Hishima can make it out of here before the GP arrive."

Yume's expression was unreadable. "What about..."

"I'll take care of it. Just go."

Yume held her gaze briefly, before nodding and standing to her feet. "Hishima, we're outta here."

**XX**

Ayeka waited until Yume and Hishima had moved out of ear shot, then rounded on Washu angrily.

"I don't believe this! After everything she put us through, you're just going to let her _walk away?_"

"Don't worry. I said I'd take care of it."

"That's not the point! You're willingly letting a condemned criminal walk free!" She turned pleadingly to Tenchi, who had watched the entire scene play out in stunned silence. "Lord Tenchi, say something! This is madness!"

The young man stepped forward and rested a hand on Washu's shoulder. "Washu, I don't think..."

""Look after your own"", the scientist quoted, cutting him off gently with a somber expression. "That's what they say on your planet, isn't it?"

Tenchi squeezed her shoulder lightly. "I'm not sure this is a good idea, but I think I understand. Yume was your friend, right?"

Ayeka stamped her foot in frustration before Washu had a chance to reply. "What does that have anything to do with..."

Her sentence was prematurely aborted when Yume suddenly reappeared, quietly stepping forward from slightly behind Ayeka and startling all three of them.

Washu raised her eyebrows. "What are you doing? I told you to leave."

Yume responded by reaching behind her and unclipping the Hielzen sword from it's resting place on her back. She pushed it into Washu's hands. "Here."

Washu said nothing, but Tenchi saw a significant look pass between the two scientists. Then Yume simply turned and left without another word.

"Well," Ayeka huffed. "That was a bit rude. Not even a word of thanks."

"She_ did_ thank me, Ayeka", Washu corrected as she weighed the Shadow Blade in her hands thoughtfully. "In her own way".

* * *

**Ending notes:** And so it begins. This is the start of a fan fiction challenge on LiveJournal that I have committed to, called "30 Friends". Each separate entry will be responding to one of the thirty given prompts and focusing on Washu and Yume's friendship/rivalry.

This opening entry was inspired by the fact that Minagi _did_ have the Hielzen sword returned to her by the end of the Bizen story arc, as she has it in her possession when she visits Yakage's grave at the very end. But interestingly enough, we're not shown exactly how that transpired. Either 1) Yume felt guilty enough to return it of her own accord or 2) Washu coaxed her into doing so. For the sake of the prompt, I opted for a combination of the two.

For the unaware, Yume is a manga-only character: a rival/drinking buddy of Washu's from the Academy. There is a fairly excellent Wikipedia article on her that can bee looked up, should any of you be interested in more details.


	2. Cold Comfort

**Opening notes:** Alludes to "Here Comes Jurai 2" (the stills and audio after the credits of OAV episode 13) and a particular character's death in _No Need for Tenchi_ Vol. 6.

For the 30 Friends prompt #21 - "common ground".

* * *

Washu didn't speak one word the whole trip back from Ryuten.

No one asked. No one wanted to. It was as if they sensed the images that flickered behind the scientist's eyes... Yume's tear-strained face and quivering hands, now permanently engraved as a stern reminder of the folly of dangerous minds.

It all hit a bit _too_ close to home.

As soon as they arrived back, Washu smashed the video camera against the floor. Plastic and tape skidded across the lab, bumping against her slippers as if mocking her. _It could have been you, it could have been you._ She angrily crunched the camera lens under her heel.

She wasn't very good at saying "I'm sorry". She tended to get frustrated instead.

She left the shattered remains where they fell: in the back of the lab and the back of her mind. A constant reminder that _yes_, she too was capable of getting carried away.

**XX**

Later, much later...

"Primitive pile of junk," Yume muttered, nudging the abandoned heap of plastic with the edge of her boot. "Why do you even keep this here, anyway?"

Washu turned sharply in her seat and swore under breath. She had forgotten the pile was there. Irritated, the vindictive words slipped from her mouth before she could stop them. "The same reason you had Takashima's mask half-hidden in your quarters."

Yume's boot froze in mid-air. Washu winced, immediately ashamed of her impulse. _Dammit._

However, her colleague remained thankfully silent. The redhead looked on grimly as the other woman bent and lifted part of the shattered tape from its resting place, inspecting the partial label that remained. She could almost _see_ the dots connecting in Yume's mind.

They were both quiet for so long, the abrupt _thack_ as the tape clattered back to the floor came as a surprise. As did...

_Bzzzap! _

Washu was off her cushion in seconds, grabbing for the disintergrator pistol Yume had pulled from the folds of her dress. "Hey! You have no right to..."

"I buried the mask."

Startled, she dropped her grip on Yume's arm as if it was a hotrod. "What?"

"We buried it." The arm was still outstretched, pistol aimed levelly at the now empty corner of the floor. She avoided Washu's eyes. "Hishima and I. We took it back to Ryuten, to the same spot that Mushima fell."

"But why... I mean, you told me you wanted to be reminded..."

"I _am_ reminded." Yume's voice hardened considerably, but didn't raise. "Everyday, every time I look Hishima in the eye. I can see it. And I know that despite everything, he'd make the exact same choice as Takashima did. It forces me to be..." She paused then, choosing her words carefully. "... forces me to be _mindful_. I don't need a keepsake."

Her arm dropped and she finally, _finally_ looked Washu in the eye. "Don't think I haven't noticed how she avoids you. Every time you walk into the same room, she looks for any excuse to get away. The resentment, the distrust, the fear on her face..."

Washu clinched her fists. "Shut up."

Yume just smirked and ignored her. "Every time. That's reminder enough, don't you think?" She tucked the pistol back into her dress. "Don't overdo it. You didn't need that crap anymore than I needed the mask."

And she left Washu there, alone and staring at the empty corner.

_I'm not very good at saying "I'm sorry"..._

She heard the scrape of metal-clad boots against the lab floor as they left, an unspoken response carried with them: _That's okay, I'm not either._

* * *

**Notes:** I can't tell you how many ungodly angsty post-"Here Comes Jurai 2" fics I've read with Washu and Ryoko. Oi.

The overwhelming emotional trauma TM fandom assigns to the incident is a bit much. However, I disliked the flippant way Okuda just brushed it off. So I decided to go for a different angle... After all, if _anyone_ can understand and forgive Washu for what she did, it would be Yume.


End file.
